Control method for information apparatus and program
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing remote control and monitoring technologies for home devices are cumbersome, requiring multiple steps and separate screens for operation, and lack efficient control of electric curtain devices, which complicates operations like partial opening or closing.
Innovation Solution
A control method for an information apparatus with a touch panel display that displays a floor plan, allows device icons for electric curtain devices, and uses pinch-out or pinch-in operations on a curtain image to send control commands for opening, closing, or adjusting the curtain's width, integrating operation and state confirmation on a single screen.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If separate operation screens are used for each target device, then device control functionality is achieved, but the number of operation steps increases and user convenience deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the floor plan display and device operation screen into a single integrated display. The operation screen is overlaid on the floor plan, allowing users to control devices without navigating away from the floor plan view. This merging eliminates the need to switch between separate screens, reducing operation steps while maintaining system functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The floor plan display serves multiple functions: it acts as both a spatial representation of the building layout and an operational interface for controlling target devices. By making the floor plan multi-functional, the system eliminates the need for separate operation screens, thereby reducing the number of operation steps while maintaining comprehensive device control capability.
2Productivity
If full operation screens are displayed for each device, then complete control functionality is provided, but display resource utilization deteriorates due to screen real estate consumption
Solution Approach 1:
The operation interface is segmented into compact control elements that are distributed across the floor plan display area. Instead of consolidating all controls in a single full-screen overlay, the system divides control functions into smaller, contextually-placed elements along the curtain's path, optimizing display space utilization while maintaining operational efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from a two-dimensional full-screen overlay to a spatial distribution of control elements along the curtain's three-dimensional path. By placing operation screens at multiple positions along the curtain's movement trajectory, the system utilizes the spatial dimension to provide complete control functionality without consuming excessive display area at any single location.
3Adaptability or versatility
If multiple operation screens are displayed for electric curtain device, then complete control functionality is achieved, but operation complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-positions operation screens at multiple locations along the curtain's path before the user needs to interact with them. This preliminary placement allows users to access the appropriate control screen immediately when they reach that position, eliminating the need to search or navigate through multiple screens, thereby reducing operation complexity while maintaining versatile control functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The floor plan serves as an intermediary that organizes and presents multiple operation screens in a spatially logical manner. Instead of presenting multiple full-screen overlays that would confuse the user, the floor plan mediates by displaying scaled operation screens at their corresponding physical locations, creating an intuitive mapping between the visual representation and actual device positions.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
A control method according to the present disclosure causes a computer of an information apparatus to: display a display screen on the touch panel display, the display screen representing a floor plan of a building; display device icons representing one or more target devices on the display screen representing the floor plan, the device icons including an icon representing an electric curtain device capable of opening and closing a curtain through a remote operation; display an operation screen including an image representing the curtain of the electric curtain device as overlapped on the display screen representing the floor plan, when selection of the icon representing the electric curtain device, among the one or more target devices, is sensed; and output a first open control command to the network when a pinch-out operation is sensed on the operation screen, the first open control command being for opening the curtain of the electric curtain device corresponding to the selected icon.